The best American mystery stories, 2005byJoyce Carol OatesOtto Penzler

The Best American Mystery Stories, 2005 is an anthology edited by Joyce Carol Oates and Otto Penzler.

Since its inception in 1915, the Best American series has become the premier annual showcase for the country's finest short fiction and nonfiction. For each volume, a series editor reads pieces from hundreds of periodicals, then selects between fifty and a hundred outstanding works. That selection is pared down to twenty or so very best pieces by a guest editor who is widely recognized as a leading writer in his or her field. This unique system has helped make the Best American series the most respected -- and most popular -- of its kind.

This seventh installment of the premier mystery anthology boasts pulse-quickening stories from all reaches of the genre, selected by the world-renowned mystery writer Michael Connelly. His choices include a Prohibition-era tale of a scorned lover's revenge, a Sherlock Holmesinspired mystery solved by an actor playing the famous detective onstage, stories of a woman's near-fatal search for self-discovery, a bar owner's gutsy attempt to outwit the mob, and a showdown between double-crossing detectives, and a tale of murder by psychology. This year's edition features mystery favorites as well as talented up-and-comers, for a diverse colleciton sure to thrill all readers.

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Product Description
The Best American series has been the premier annual showcase for the country's finest short fiction and nonfiction since 1915. Each volume's series editor selects notable works from hundreds of periodicals. A special guest editor, a leading writer in the field, then chooses the very best twenty or so pieces to publish. This unique system has made the Best American series the most respected—a nd most popular—of its kind.

The Best American Mystery Stories 2005 includes
Scott Turow • Edward P. Jones • Louise Erdrich • Dennis Lehane • Daniel Handler • Laura Lippman • George V. Higgins • David Means • Richard Burgin • Scott Wolven • Stuart M. Kaminsky • and others

Joyce Carol Oates, guest editor, is a highly respected novelist, critic, playwright, poet, and short story writer. She is the author of numerous books, including the National Book Award winner Them and most recently the novel The Falls.

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Contents

Forward
Introduction by Joyce Carol Oates

Richard Burgin - The Identity Club
Louise Erdrich - Disaster Stamps of Pluto
Daniel Handler - Delmonico
George V. Higgins - Jack Duggan's Law
Edward P. Jones - Old Boys, Old Girls
Stuart M. Kaminsky - The Shooting of John Roy Worth
Dennis Lehane - Until Gwen
Laura Lippman - The Shoeshine Man's Regrets
Tim McLoughlin - When All This Was Bay Ridge
Lou Manfredo - Case Closed
David Means - Sault Ste. Marie
Kent Nelson - Public Trouble
Daniel Orozco - Officers Weep
David Rachel - The Last Man I Killed
Joseph Raiche - One Mississippi
John Sayles - Cruisers
Sam Shaw - Reconstruction
Oz Spies - The Love of a Strong Man
Scott Turow - Loyalty
Scott Wolven - Barracuda
Contributors' Notes
Other Distinguished Mystery Stories of